Why PepsiCo Investors Should Watch This NFL Season Closely

PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE:PEP) has its fingers seemingly in every marketing corner out there, but one that might fly under the radar is the soft drink company's partnership with the NFL. According to a statement from the company, the Ravens-Broncos game kicks off Pepsi's third decade of "toting the rock," as pigskin enthusiasts like to say.

In the statement, PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE:PEP) had this to say:

The NFL kicks off a huge selling season for PepsiCo, as the platform allows us to engage and activate our collective brands and increase coincidence of purchases between beverages and snacks. Throughout the season, we will leverage our relationship with the NFL to connect to consumers with activations spanning many of our largest food and beverage brands including Pepsi, Tostitos, Quaker, Doritos and Gatorade.

Some early highlights from this year’s numerous brand activations include Pepsi’s “Are You Fan Enough?” mobile bus tour that will capture tailgaters demonstrating their fandom for their beloved teams; Gatorade’s co-produced documentary-style film with the NFL, “RGIII: The Will to Win”; Quaker teaming up with NFL quarterback Andrew Luck and Fuel Up to Play 60 to help fuel healthy families and get kids moving this football season; and Sabra Dipping Company’s first year as the Official Dips Sponsor of the NFL that includes an online sweepstakes, tailgating guide and media activations.

A Pepsi spokeswoman told Insider Monkey that "in 2012, [the company's] NFL in-store promotions helped make [it] the second-largest growth contributor in all measured U.S. retail channels combined;" a very important point for investors to consider from now until Super Bowl XLVIII.